OM confirms HEX discussions

Stockholmsbörsen operator OM has confirmed that it is in talks with neighbouring Finnish exchange HEX, firing speculation that the Swedish technology firm is preparing a takeover bid.

OM issued a brief statement this morning confirming that it has been in talks with HEX for some time, "aiming at a close co-operation between the two companies".

OM is already the largest shareholder in HEX, with a 15.7% ownership interest, and is a driving force in the Norex alliance of Scandinavian exchanges, which currently includes the Copenhagen Stock Exchange, Iceland Stock Exchange, Oslo Bourse and Stockholmsbörsen.

HEX operates the stock exchange and central securities depository in Finland, Estonia and Latvia and has a cross-membership and cross-access agreement with pan-European exchange alliance Euronext. The Finnish exchange currently uses trading technology supplied by Computershare.

OM's statement comes the day after the London Stock Exchange signalled an agreement with NeoNet to jointly market electronic execution services to brokers and investors in the Nordic region.